One kit.
Two pre-op screenings.
UA + nicotine/cotinine screening built around two important checkpoints before surgery.
Patients Leave Your Office With Screening Kits in Hand
DON’T FIND OUT TOO LATE.
Identify nicotine use early in the pre-op pathway.
Help identify potential nicotine-related issues before they become authorization delays, added staff work, rescheduling concerns, or last-minute surgical-schedule problems.
Identify risk earlier
Nicotine status can matter in procedures dependent on fusion, healing, and tendon-to-bone repair.
Reduce workflow disruption
Earlier screening can help surface issues before they create extra calls, authorization delays, rescheduling, or OR disruption.
Improve the patient experience
Patients leave your office with the kit and a clear plan for the two scheduled screening checkpoints.
An emerging standard in preoperative readiness.
Nicotine abstinence and verification requirements are increasingly incorporated into some spine-surgery coverage and optimization pathways. Requirements vary by payer, plan, procedure and policy.
Aetna
For applicable spinal and SI joint fusion pathways, nicotine status is part of precertification review. Recent or active users may require laboratory nicotine/cotinine documentation within the payer’s specified timeframe.
Cigna / Carelon
Applicable fusion pathways may include a six-week tobacco/nicotine abstinence expectation or recommendation before surgery.
Washington State L&I
Applicable fusion pathways include nicotine-abstinence and urine cotinine verification requirements in the cited guidance.
Always verify the patient’s current payer, plan, procedure and policy. NeuCup+ Nicotine does not guarantee authorization and may not replace laboratory testing when a payer specifically requires a laboratory result.
Nicotine status is not administrative—it is a surgical risk variable.
Clinical evidence summarized in the NeuCup+ Nicotine materials highlights risk across several orthopedic and spine procedures.
Spinal Fusion
Nonunion risk: smokers 22.4% vs non-smokers 11.5%. Pooled RR 1.91.
Hip / Knee Replacement
Higher PJI odds. OR 1.84. Revision OR 2.12.
Rotator Cuff Repair
Retear RR 2.06. Reoperation RR 1.29.
ACL Reconstruction
Higher SSI odds. OR 1.40.
Nonunion risk in spinal fusion
Smokers 22.4% | Non-smokers 11.5% | pooled RR 1.91.
Clinical protocols and payer requirements vary.
Build the requirement into the workflow.
Patients leave your office with screening kits in hand and a defined two-checkpoint plan—helping your team address nicotine requirements before they become a last-minute issue.
Two screenings. Two checkpoints.
No more than two screenings in this workflow.
6 weeks before surgery
The patient uses the NeuCup+ Nicotine kit for the first scheduled screening. Depending on the practice workflow, this screening may be completed in the office using the kit or at home using the kit.
48 hours before surgery
The patient uses the NeuCup+ Nicotine kit for the second scheduled screening at home.
Timing should follow the surgeon's, practice's, facility's and applicable payer protocol.
Use the kit in office or at home.
In the office
The patient completes one of the two scheduled screenings using the NeuCup+ Nicotine kit before leaving.
At home
The patient takes the kit home and completes the scheduled screening at the appropriate checkpoint.
Either way, the NeuCup+ Nicotine kit is the screening method.
Automated reminders support completion.
Kit-in-hand enrollment plus reminders can help reduce repeated staff calls and messages during the pre-op process.
Before they leave
In the office, the patient fills out the registration form, completes the payment, and establishes the screening schedule.
After the visit
Automated reminders help prompt completion of the scheduled screening checkpoints.
Professional review
Submitted strip photographs and manufacturer references are securely shared with the designated healthcare professional.
6 WEEKS. 48 HOURS. KNOW BEFORE SURGERY.
Screen early for payer requirements. Screen again close to surgery. NeuCup+ Nicotine combines urinalysis and nicotine screening in one convenient kit.
CURRENT PRE-OP SCREENING INFORMATION • IMAGES DELIVERED TO THE PROVIDER IN MINUTES
What providers are saying
As a busy orthopedic spine surgeon, my focus is always on achieving the best possible outcomes for my patients. Bone and wound healing are critical to those outcomes, and nicotine exposure can significantly compromise both. NEU-CUP gives physicians a simple, practical way to objectively detect and monitor nicotine exposure. As payers increasingly focus on nicotine testing and documentation as part of surgical risk optimization, having an accessible and reliable tool like NEU-CUP will become even more important. I believe NEU-CUP should be in every orthopedic and spine surgeon’s armamentarium—helping us meet evolving payer expectations while, most importantly, giving our patients the best opportunity for successful healing and better outcomes.
Patients Leave Your Office With Screening Kits in Hand
Make payment and the screening plan part of checkout.
- Practice pays
- Hospital pays
- Patient pays at checkout
In the office, the patient fills out the registration form, completes the payment, and establishes the screening schedule.
Get Your Free Kits + Virtual Demonstration
To get your free kits and virtual demonstration, click here.
neucupnicotineinfo@urynx.com
800-201-0576
Selected references
Payer references
Aetna CPB 0743 and spinal-surgery precertification materials; Cigna Medical Coverage Policy 0303; Carelon Clinical Guidelines: Spine Surgery; Washington State L&I lumbar spine and tobacco-cessation guidance.
Clinical references
Nunna et al., Global Spine Journal 2022; He et al., Frontiers in Surgery 2022; Fan et al., Journal of Shoulder and Elbow Surgery 2022; ACL systematic review/meta-analysis cited in NeuCup materials.
Important
Payer criteria can change. Confirm current requirements directly with the patient’s plan before relying on any screening pathway for authorization.
Choose a time that works for your team.
Schedule your NeuCup+ Nicotine virtual demonstration Monday through Thursday. All requested times are Eastern Time (New York). Your appointment is confirmed only after our team replies.
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